Saturday, 27 December 2014

15 Second Review: All Cheerleaders Die

Based on the 2001 film of the
same name All Cheerleaders Die feels
like a throwback to millennial horror. Indeed, the plot is parts The Source (aka The Secret Craft, 2002), The
Craft (1996) and Bring it On (2000).
Overtones of Wicked Lake (2008, for which
Chris Sivertson wrote the screenplay) do not do enough to bring the reimagining
of All Cheerleaders Die into the current
horror landscape. I am sure that co-writer/directors Silvertson and Lucky McKee
have enormous fondness for the project given that the original All Cheerleaders Die was their debut
film. However, the remake is easily McKee’s weakest film to-date (although his
track-record is admittedly strong). All
Cheerleaders Die aims for “WTF?” in a number of places, but the narrative drags
in the middle. The final act picks up the pace, mainly because the script
employs the “McKeeism” of establishing an abhorrent antagonist, then tipping
the power-balance so far in their favour that there appears to be little hope
for the protagonists. McKee uses the same trick in several movies (including The Woman and Red), but it is a powerful dramatic device, nevertheless. The
closing moments sent me away with a smile but without cause to forget the weaknesses
that plague the movie’s run-time.